This man is George Berkeley, also known as Bishop Berkeley. But don't get him confused with the location is Sophie's World Bjerkely, a printing company named Berkely, or the inanimate monkey Curious George. He is very like those on three, trust me. Berkeley is a very important philosopher. Many philosophers propose a new theory that agrees with their beliefs, his being immaterialism. He was a talented metaphysican and known for defending idealism. Berkeley felt that current philosophies and sciences were a threat to the Christian faith, though he is one of the most consistent empiricists. A little fun fact is that Berkeley was the first philosopher and literary figure of any note to visit America.
Biography
George Berkeley was a bishop of the Catholic Church. So he also is referred to as Bishop Berkeley. He was born in 1685 in Ireland. Ireland was mainly Roman Catholic so it's not a surprise that George was Catholic also. Was schooled at the (enrolled at 11 years old) Kilkenny College for several years, then at the age of 15 went to the Trinity College. Around 1707 he was ordained into the Anglican Church. He wrote his first major work in 1709. Around 1728 he married Anne Forster of Dublin. Berkeley died in 1753. His death was said to be caused by a stroke.
Philosophy
Berkeley is known for his theory of 'immaterialism'. This is his belief that there are no material objects. Only thing that was there was our minds and ideas. Though you may think that's weird, because if you were to stub your toe on chair then you'd chair then you would think that it was real but Berkeley would argue that it's not. Everything else that wasn't perceived through senses, he thought did not exist. His thing was that the only things that exist are the things we perceive through our senses. We can not perceive material and matter, therefore it does not exist. He said that everything we see and feel is 'an effect of God's power'. We only exist in the mind of God, was what Berkeley thought.
Let's go back to the chair thing. George Berkeley believed that if you were to pound on a table, you would think it is hard, but no. You simply had the sensation that it was hard. You didn't actually feel the matter. Same of how in a dream, you could dream of pounding on something hard, but it's not actually there and real now is it? It's like your being hypnotized to feel it. Berkeley believed in a 'spirit'. He thought all our ideas have a cause beyond our consciousness. Your own soul could be the cause of your ideas. Of course that 'spirit' was God.
Around his time a philoshical question went around, "If a tree falls down in the forest and nobody hears it did it make a noise?" Some say Berkeley said it. But he did say, "But, say you, surely there is nothing easier than for me to imagine trees, for instance, in a park [. . .] and nobody by to perceive them. [...] The objects of sense exist only when they are perceived; the trees therefore are in the garden [. . .] no longer than while there is somebody by to perceive them." Nowadays you may think in response to the tree question, "Of course it made a sound!" But here's a little more technical answer somebody gave, "Sound is vibration, transmitted to our senses through the mechanism of the ear, and recognized as sound only at our nerve centers. The falling of the tree or any other disturbance will produce vibration of the air. If there be no ears to hear, there will be no sound." But really how can we be sure? Nobody knows because if someone was there it would make a sound but if not there is no proof that it did or didn't make a sound.
Major Works
An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision (1709) A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710) Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous (1713) An Essay Towards Preventing the Ruine of Great Britain (1721) De Motu (1721) Analyst (1734) Siris (1744)
Quotes
"The same principles which at first view lead to skepticism, pursued to a certain point, bring men back to common sense."
"That thing of hell and eternal punishment is the most absurd, as well as the most disagreeable thought that ever entered into the head of mortal man."
"Truth is the cry of all, but the game of few."
"If we admit a thing so extraordinary as the creation of this world, it should seem that we admit something strange, and odd, and new to human apprehension, beyond any other miracle whatsoever."
"From my own being, and from the dependency I find in myself and my ideas, I do, by an act of reason, necessarily infer the existence of a God, and of all created things in the mind of God. "
Introduction
This man is George Berkeley, also known as Bishop Berkeley. But don't get him confused with the location is Sophie's World Bjerkely, a printing company named Berkely, or the inanimate monkey Curious George. He is very like those on three, trust me. Berkeley is a very important philosopher. Many philosophers propose a new theory that agrees with their beliefs, his being immaterialism. He was a talented metaphysican and known for defending idealism. Berkeley felt that current philosophies and sciences were a threat to the Christian faith, though he is one of the most consistent empiricists. A little fun fact is that Berkeley was the first philosopher and literary figure of any note to visit America.
Biography
George Berkeley was a bishop of the Catholic Church. So he also is referred to as Bishop Berkeley. He was born in 1685 in Ireland. Ireland was mainly Roman Catholic so it's not a surprise that George was Catholic also. Was schooled at the (enrolled at 11 years old) Kilkenny College for several years, then at the age of 15 went to the Trinity College. Around 1707 he was ordained into the Anglican Church. He wrote his first major work in 1709. Around 1728 he married Anne Forster of Dublin. Berkeley died in 1753. His death was said to be caused by a stroke.
Philosophy
Berkeley is known for his theory of 'immaterialism'. This is his belief that there are no material objects. Only thing that was there was our minds and ideas. Though you may think that's weird, because if you were to stub your toe on chair then you'd chair then you would think that it was real but Berkeley would argue that it's not. Everything else that wasn't perceived through senses, he thought did not exist. His thing was that the only things that exist are the things we perceive through our senses. We can not perceive material and matter, therefore it does not exist. He said that everything we see and feel is 'an effect of God's power'. We only exist in the mind of God, was what Berkeley thought.
Let's go back to the chair thing. George Berkeley believed that if you were to pound on a table, you would think it is hard, but no. You simply had the sensation that it was hard. You didn't actually feel the matter. Same of how in a dream, you could dream of pounding on something hard, but it's not actually there and real now is it? It's like your being hypnotized to feel it. Berkeley believed in a 'spirit'. He thought all our ideas have a cause beyond our consciousness. Your own soul could be the cause of your ideas. Of course that 'spirit' was God.
Around his time a philoshical question went around, "If a tree falls down in the forest and nobody hears it did it make a noise?" Some say Berkeley said it. But he did say, "But, say you, surely there is nothing easier than for me to imagine trees, for instance, in a park [. . .] and nobody by to perceive them. [...] The objects of sense exist only when they are perceived; the trees therefore are in the garden [. . .] no longer than while there is somebody by to perceive them." Nowadays you may think in response to the tree question, "Of course it made a sound!" But here's a little more technical answer somebody gave, "Sound is vibration, transmitted to our senses through the mechanism of the ear, and recognized as sound only at our nerve centers. The falling of the tree or any other disturbance will produce vibration of the air. If there be no ears to hear, there will be no sound." But really how can we be sure? Nobody knows because if someone was there it would make a sound but if not there is no proof that it did or didn't make a sound.
Major Works
An Essay Towards a New Theory of Vision (1709)
A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge (1710)
Three Dialogues between Hylas and Philonous (1713)
An Essay Towards Preventing the Ruine of Great Britain (1721)
De Motu (1721)
Analyst (1734)
Siris (1744)
Quotes
"The same principles which at first view lead to skepticism, pursued to a certain point, bring men back to common sense."
"That thing of hell and eternal punishment is the most absurd, as well as the most disagreeable thought that ever entered into the head of mortal man."
"Truth is the cry of all, but the game of few."
"If we admit a thing so extraordinary as the creation of this world, it should seem that we admit something strange, and odd, and new to human apprehension, beyond any other miracle whatsoever."
"From my own being, and from the dependency I find in myself and my ideas, I do, by an act of reason, necessarily infer the existence of a God, and of all created things in the mind of God. "
Bibliography
Magee, Bryan. "George Berkeley." The Story Of Philosophy. New York: DK Pub., 1998.
"George Berkeley Quotes - BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. Web. 24 Mar. 2011http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/g/george_berkeley.html
"George Berkeley." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 23 Mar. 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Berkeley
Downing, Lisa, "George Berkeley", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/berkeley/
Gaarder, Jostein. Sophie's World. Trans. Paulette Moller. New York: Berkley, 1994.
Berkeley's Life and Works. University of Illinois at Chicago. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. http://tigger.uic.edu/~hilbert/Images%20of%20Berkeley/Berk_life.htm